LSAT 118 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q18

LR Question 18 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Decentralization enables divisions of a large institution …

QUESTION TYPE: Most Strongly Supported

FACTS: Decentralization:

• always permits more realistic planning
• strongly encourages innovation
• lets central admin focus on institution-wide issues

ANALYSIS: The stimulus gives us a bunch of benefits of decentralization. I’ve listed them above.

A good indication for where to draw inferences in MSS questions is when they use strong language. Here, the key line is: “This always permits more realistic planning.”

If decentralization always leads to more realistic planning, then institutions that don’t have decentralized divisions are missing out on that benefit.

That doesn’t necessarily mean their planning is unrealistic. It just means it isn’t as realistic as it could be.

___________

1. CORRECT. This is basically the contrapositive idea the stimulus is pushing toward. If decentralization always permits more realistic planning, then institutions without autonomous divisions (centralized institutions) are not getting the maximum degree of realism that decentralization could provide.
2. Tempting, but too strong. Decentralization strongly encourages innovation, but we do not know that centralized institutions fail to encourage innovation too.
3. The author gives several advantages, but never discusses disadvantages. You can’t compare two things when only one side is mentioned.
4. The stimulus says decentralization allows central administration to avoid being overwhelmed by details. That doesn’t tell us what is “usually” true in institutions generally.
5. Too strong. The stimulus says decentralization encourages innovation and permits more realistic planning. It does not guarantee that decision-makers always make innovative or realistic decisions.